In order to provide efficient service and enable expedient travel, taxicab/car service reimbursement authorization may be offered to customers at the time of the reservation or in the event of a day of service issue. Advance taxi authorizations are currently permitted when traveling within the same borough, except in Westchester and Nassau counties, and to certain restricted locations. Customers are not required to accept a taxicab/car service reimbursement authorization.
On the day of service, if an Access-A-Ride (AAR) customer with a scheduled trip was ready to travel and was at the pick-up location during the 30-minute pick-up window and the scheduled vehicle has not arrived within 30 minutes of the scheduled pick-up time, the customer may call the Paratransit Command Center at 1-877-337-2017 or 718-393-4999. Customers who are deaf/hard of hearing can use their preferred relay service or the free 711 relay service. When the recorded message begins, the customer will be prompted to press “1” for English (and then press “3” to speak to a representative). If “1” is not pressed, callers will hear choices in each of the respective languages: for assistance in Spanish, press “2,” for assistance in Russian, Mandarin, Cantonese, Haitian Creole, Korean, or Bengali, press “3,” for all other languages, press “4.” The customer will then be connected to a representative. The representative will contact the scheduled service provider to find out the AAR vehicle’s estimated time of arrival and advise the customer when the scheduled vehicle will arrive or whether New York City Transit (NYCT) will dispatch an on-call vehicle to pick up the customer. If the scheduled vehicle or an on-call vehicle (accessible as necessary) is not available to pick up the customer within a reasonable period of time, and the customer is able to arrange to take the trip with a taxicab or car service, NYCT will authorize the customer to do so and give the customer a taxi authorization number. NYCT will reimburse the customer for the cost of the taxicab or car service, as described below. All taxi reimbursements must be pre-authorized.
Taxicab/car service authorization
When a taxicab or car service is authorized, the customer is responsible for paying the full fare plus any tolls and obtaining a valid receipt from the driver. Only valid, licensed NYC Taxi and Limousine commissioned taxi or For-Hire Vehicle (FHV) service receipts are qualified for reimbursement.
When using a taxicab, obtain the receipt from the meter. When using a car service, the original receipt must be completed by the driver with the trip date, fare, car number, and driver’s signature. The receipt must include the name and telephone number of the car service. Any tolls and/or tip must be identified with the request or the fare indicated will be accepted as the total amount due. Blank receipts completed by customers will not be processed for reimbursement. When using Uber, Lyft, or other shared ride services, detailed electronic receipts are required.
Reimbursement process
The customer must submit a written request to NYCT to receive reimbursement. An AAR Taxicab/Car Service Reimbursement Form is available upon request or online.
We recommend customers use this form and fill out all fields. NYCT will reimburse the customer for the total cost of the trip (including no more than a 15% tip) minus the AAR paratransit fare. The AAR fare is the same as the full fare on fixed-route bus and subway service. NYCT reserves the right to reject any taxicab/car service reimbursement including, but not limited to, one or more of the following circumstances described here:
- Reimbursement requests postmarked 60 days after the taxi trip authorization
- Photocopied receipts
- Receipts completed by customers
- Failure to include valid car service receipts
- Business cards
- Duplicate requests
- No trips scheduled for the receipt date
- Taxi trips that are not authorized by Access-A-Ride Paratransit
- Illegible receipts
- Altered receipts
- Blank receipts
- Receipts with pick-up and drop-off addresses that do not match the original scheduled trip
- Meter receipts indicating “Negotiated Rate”
- Meter receipts indicating “Flat Rate”, except for trips to/from the airport
- Trip itineraries, booking confirmations, financial statements, bus fares, bank fees and invoices
- Faxed receipts
- Round-trip receipts
- Manufactured receipts (i.e., customer created receipts)
- Car service receipts with consecutive receipt numbers
- Receipts with excessive fare for the scheduled pick-up and drop-off locations
- Cancelled trips that were subsequently taken
If the AAR Reimbursement form is not used, a written reimbursement request is required. The written reimbursement request must include the customer’s name, address, and AAR ID number, as well as the taxi authorization number, original/valid taxicab or car service receipt (with the official taxicab or car service information noted above and the fare amount plus tolls), and the date of the trip.
NYCT will not process, and will return, any requests that do not comply with this policy and/or include the necessary documentation. It is recommended that customers keep a copy of receipts for their records.
Requests for reimbursement should be mailed to the following address or submitted online:
AAR Taxicab Reimbursements
NYCT-Paratransit
130 Livingston Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Conditional taxicab or car service authorization
NYCT reserves the right to also offer customers conditional authorization for taxicab or car service. Conditional authorization given to customers is subject to verification that the same day pick-up problem is the responsibility of NYCT. If, upon investigation, NYCT determines that the problem was the responsibility of the customer, then the taxicab or car service fare is at the expense of the customer, i.e., NYCT will not reimburse the customer for that particular trip. If NYCT determines that the problem was the responsibility of NYCT, then the customer will be reimbursed upon receipt of the necessary documentation.